Corporate Advocacy Program: The best way to manage and repair your business reputation. Hiding negative complaints is only a Band-Aid. Consumers want to see how businesses take care of business. All businesses will get complaints. How those businesses take care of those complaints is what separates good businesses from bad businesses.

My daughter completing her degree at Penn State and has been a customer of Citizens Bank for a number of years. In the beginning I would send checks automatically from my Wachovia account but due to unpredictable posting of these checks by Citizens bank we changed to placing cash in the account on a weekly basis at a branch.

My daughter totally relies on her online access to the account to manage her spending and when the balance is low she calls me and so that I can get to a branch I refill the account. It would appear that the online system is always showing wrong balances. This means that rather than wait for a top up deposit she thinks she has money and buys food.

On Monday June 8th she called me to tell me she was down to $5.81, I agreed to put $40 into her account as soon as the branch opened near my office. I did this at 10am at the branch in Montgomeryville. The slip in receipt of the cash showed a balance of $45.81.

At 2 in the afternoon she called to tell me that she was overdrawn again, on looking at the account a charge of 39.00 (insufficient funds fee) had been slapped on the account while the account still showed it had a $45.81 balance, then a $9.20 charge which made the account negative $2.39. After phone calls to the bank to find out what was going on all which were met with who cares attitudes I deposited another $40 cash, again I have the slip which shows a positive balance of $ 35.16 My daughter, now starving spends $13.01 on food. Later that night she finds another $39 charge is applied making her in the red again.

Here is the issue, if you download the data to spreadsheet it shows a very different story from the website. I think deliberately trying to generate fees.

Dont use this bank especially if your a student, they are predatory sharks.

Corporate Advocacy Program: The best way to manage and repair your business reputation. Hiding negative complaints is only a Band-Aid. Consumers want to see how businesses take care of business. All businesses will get complaints. How those businesses take care of those complaints is what separates good businesses from bad businesses.

AUTHOR: Jimmy Panousis - (U.S.A.)

I worked for Citizens in PA for almost 2 years. Fran, the Bucks County Regional Manager, pushes OD fees EXACTLY as described by the 1st post.

We were forced to open checking accounts that had excessive overdraft fees and monthly charges in order to ripoff the customers. Here's how:

We had to open accounts, lying to the customers that the account has "no fees" and put specifically designed waivers on the accounts so that the customer doesn't realize the scam (the maximum waiver you could use was for 1 year...)

Then, when the waiver expires months later, the customers have their guard down and they don't obsess with every line on their statements, they get hit by monthly fees that will overdraw the account (as most people keep in their checking account only enough money to cover their checks - that's why it's called a CHECKING account). The overdraft fees will overdraw the account again and again and so will the checks you write believing that your account is still good....

I routinely had customers with hundreds of dollars in fees by the time they received their statement - we were specifically instructed to hit high school kids, college students and senior citizens.

Another trick we had to use is open a "Gold" checking account to senior citizens who would come in and ask for a savings account by using a high interest rate as a carot and not disclosing the fees (using the waivers as noted above). Problem is, that "Gold" checking account had a high-balance requirement and the poor people would be hit by unneccesary monthly fees a few months later...

And to add inslult to injury we even had telemarketing days and evenings when we were forced to make telemarketing calls (disguised as "service calls" so that the bank circumvents the do-not-call registry laws). Not only these were clearly marketing calls (as suggested by the program feeding us the leads!!!) but also we had to open a number of checking accounts over the phone (the daily and weekly targets were set by Fran again, the Regional Manager).

If only homeland security new how many checking accounts Citizens Bank routinely opens over the phone without proper identification or signatures... all the auditors have to do is go to any Bucks County branch towards the end of the day and ask for the signature cards of the checking accounts opened the SAME day to uncover the illegal practice (this way there is no time to mail the signature card and obtain backdated signatures....)

Stay away from Citizens Bank in PA! I quit several years ago and I am still haunted about the things we had to do...

AUTHOR: Takeresponsibility - (U.S.A.)

SUBMITTED: Monday, July 20, 2009

POSTED: Monday, July 20, 2009

Really? Money hungry crooks? The bank couldn't legally get away with "stealing" customer's money if the customer didn't make a mistake in the first place. There are easily solutions...
1) keep track of your account! For goodness sakes be responsible!
2) Live within your means and don't spend money you don't have!
3) If you are an irresponsible child, don't use a debit card. Go into the bank and withdraw cash.

And you as a parent are the one who needs to teach your child these BASIC life lessons. You can't blame the bank. Maybe you need to blame yourself for not teaching your child the value of a dollar. She might be more responsible with money if she were without it. If she didn't know you would jump at the chance to bail her out at her beckon call.

AUTHOR: Jim - (U.S.A.)

SUBMITTED: Tuesday, July 14, 2009

POSTED: Tuesday, July 14, 2009

Actually, banks are legally run operations that have to comply with Federal Regulations and the agreements they make with customers. It seems someone is unable to comply with their end of the agreement you made - and it isn't the bank. If you want to know who it is - ask your daughter (or yourself) to look in a mirror - there you will find the culprit.

To show you how ridiculous the false balance nonsense is, let's say your daughter has $500 in the account and writes a check for $100 and doesn't get submitted for payment for 7 days. Now the ONLY way your bank would know that she wrote a check is when the check is submitted for approval. Until then, the balance online is still $500 - except the balance in the account is $400. Since your daughter doesn't contact the bank every time she writes a check (no one does that and no one should), no sane person would blame the bank for not having an accurate account balance for the customer.

The only reason a bank provides the online tool is for you to update your check register (your girlfriend should have told you that) for missing transactions, any fees, etc.... In no way does this tool substitute for a check register; it helps to keep your register balanced.

What you need to teach your daughter is that the online balances were never intended to substitute for a check register. See, if she had a check register, she would never need to check online for anything. Moreover, she would know ASAP what the REAL balance in the account is. She can then call you and tell you the account balance in the account by looking at the check register.

AUTHOR: Jim - (U.S.A.)

SUBMITTED: Tuesday, July 14, 2009

POSTED: Tuesday, July 14, 2009

Actually, banks are legally run operations that have to comply with Federal Regulations and the agreements they make with customers. It seems someone is unable to comply with their end of the agreement you made - and it isn't the bank. If you want to know who it is - ask your daughter (or yourself) to look in a mirror - there you will find the culprit.

To show you how ridiculous the false balance nonsense is, let's say your daughter has $500 in the account and writes a check for $100 and doesn't get submitted for payment for 7 days. Now the ONLY way your bank would know that she wrote a check is when the check is submitted for approval. Until then, the balance online is still $500 - except the balance in the account is $400. Since your daughter doesn't contact the bank every time she writes a check (no one does that and no one should), no sane person would blame the bank for not having an accurate account balance for the customer.

The only reason a bank provides the online tool is for you to update your check register (your girlfriend should have told you that) for missing transactions, any fees, etc.... In no way does this tool substitute for a check register; it helps to keep your register balanced.

What you need to teach your daughter is that the online balances were never intended to substitute for a check register. See, if she had a check register, she would never need to check online for anything. Moreover, she would know ASAP what the REAL balance in the account is. She can then call you and tell you the account balance in the account by looking at the check register.

AUTHOR: Jim - (U.S.A.)

SUBMITTED: Tuesday, July 14, 2009

POSTED: Tuesday, July 14, 2009

Actually, banks are legally run operations that have to comply with Federal Regulations and the agreements they make with customers. It seems someone is unable to comply with their end of the agreement you made - and it isn't the bank. If you want to know who it is - ask your daughter (or yourself) to look in a mirror - there you will find the culprit.

To show you how ridiculous the false balance nonsense is, let's say your daughter has $500 in the account and writes a check for $100 and doesn't get submitted for payment for 7 days. Now the ONLY way your bank would know that she wrote a check is when the check is submitted for approval. Until then, the balance online is still $500 - except the balance in the account is $400. Since your daughter doesn't contact the bank every time she writes a check (no one does that and no one should), no sane person would blame the bank for not having an accurate account balance for the customer.

The only reason a bank provides the online tool is for you to update your check register (your girlfriend should have told you that) for missing transactions, any fees, etc.... In no way does this tool substitute for a check register; it helps to keep your register balanced.

What you need to teach your daughter is that the online balances were never intended to substitute for a check register. See, if she had a check register, she would never need to check online for anything. Moreover, she would know ASAP what the REAL balance in the account is. She can then call you and tell you the account balance in the account by looking at the check register.

AUTHOR: Jim - (U.S.A.)

SUBMITTED: Tuesday, July 14, 2009

POSTED: Tuesday, July 14, 2009

Actually, banks are legally run operations that have to comply with Federal Regulations and the agreements they make with customers. It seems someone is unable to comply with their end of the agreement you made - and it isn't the bank. If you want to know who it is - ask your daughter (or yourself) to look in a mirror - there you will find the culprit.

To show you how ridiculous the false balance nonsense is, let's say your daughter has $500 in the account and writes a check for $100 and doesn't get submitted for payment for 7 days. Now the ONLY way your bank would know that she wrote a check is when the check is submitted for approval. Until then, the balance online is still $500 - except the balance in the account is $400. Since your daughter doesn't contact the bank every time she writes a check (no one does that and no one should), no sane person would blame the bank for not having an accurate account balance for the customer.

The only reason a bank provides the online tool is for you to update your check register (your girlfriend should have told you that) for missing transactions, any fees, etc.... In no way does this tool substitute for a check register; it helps to keep your register balanced.

What you need to teach your daughter is that the online balances were never intended to substitute for a check register. See, if she had a check register, she would never need to check online for anything. Moreover, she would know ASAP what the REAL balance in the account is. She can then call you and tell you the account balance in the account by looking at the check register.

AUTHOR: Jj - (U.S.A.)

SUBMITTED: Tuesday, July 14, 2009

POSTED: Tuesday, July 14, 2009

Listen, regardless of what she should do, Citizens Bank is run by money hungry crooks. My girlfriend works there. First they charge crazy fees, and never work with you. Oh their new policy is that they do not refund fees unless it is a bank error. They basically steal your money. Not only do they charge you over draft fees, they also charge over the limit fees. If you do 10 transactions of $1 they will charge you $270, plus over the limit fee. This is how this greedy bank makes their money.

On top of that they treat their employees like dirt. Constenly taking bonuses away, and taking away benefits. Every month their criteria for bonuses gets harder and harder to achieve. And this is the people that make their business run, and most are making crap salaries. My girlfriends manager was top in their state and they promised her a great bonus. Three months later they cut here bonus by 75%, and didn't even tell her. She got the check, and was livid.

Point being, DO NOT BANK with them. They are the worst bank I have ever been with, from top to bottom!!

AUTHOR: Ken - (U.S.A.)

SUBMITTED: Friday, June 12, 2009

POSTED: Friday, June 12, 2009

Don't use this bank if you can't maintain your account like an adult, and maintain a check register so that you will know what you have spent, and know what you have available. Online balances were never intended to replace the need to maintain your account responsibly, they are only a tool to aid in doing so.

AUTHOR: Edgeman - (U.S.A.)

The problem is that your daughter is using the online banking system to learn her account balance. It's not intended to be used that way.

No bank can provide a 100% accurate online banking system. Let's say that she buys gas and pays at the pump. What if the gas station only places a hold of $1 against her account even though she bought $30 worth of gas? She'd think that she had $29 more than she actually did. What if the restaurant places a hold for the cost of her meal but doesn't include the tip until they submit the actual charge later? How would the online system know if she wrote any checks that haven't been presented yet or that her car insurance company is about to do an auto-payment?

Your daughter needs to keep her own ledger or check register and stop using online banking in this manner. And while this is only my opinion, I think that you should have her work to repay you for the overdraft fees that you covered. She might as well learn that you can't cover for her financial errors.

Corporate Advocacy Program: The best way to manage and repair your business reputation. Hiding negative complaints is only a Band-Aid. Consumers want to see how businesses take care of business. All businesses will get complaints. How those businesses take care of those complaints is what separates good businesses from bad businesses.